Tom Mattusch

It has been extremely windy for the last several days in the areas that salmon have been caught off the San Francisco/San Mateo coast. Following the old adage for salmon, you start where the last fish was caught previously, Huli Cat went below and outside the Deep Reef, about 11 miles SSW of Half Moon Bay. First fish on the boat weighed out at a solid 20 pounds and earned Tom Westphal of Mountain View a weigh certificate for the fishing club he is a member of, Yerba Buena Anglers. The anglers caught a couple more, missed a few, had a few shorts (shakers - less than 20 inches). Talk of whales and immense bait outside a few miles made the skipper pick up to see if the action could improve. It was impossible to find an area that did not have magnificent humpback whale action. Some Humpback whales came so close to the 53 foot Huli Cat as to bump the lures and rigs. The sardines were so thick, anglers frequently jumped on their rods thinking they had a bite, when it was thick bait bumping the line. The anglers requested to check the crab pots, so we ran about 8 miles north, pulled five limits of Dungeness crab, and headed back to the harbor.

Fish Species: Salmon & Dungeness Crab
Bait Used: Anchovy
Tackle Used: FBR, RSK, Needlefish, anchovy on crowbar
Method Used: Trolling
Water Depth: 260-285 for fishing, 195 crabbing
Water Temperature: 53
Wind Direction: W
Wind Speed: 7 kts
A fish a rod, not shown, crab limis
A fish a rod, not shown, crab limis


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Tom Mattusch

About The Author: Captain Tom Mattusch

Company: Huli Cat Sportfishing

Area Reporting: Central California, San Francisco Bay area

Bio: Tom Mattusch is currently the owner/operator of the Huli Cat, a 53 foot charter boat operating out of Pillar Point Harbor and has fished the West Coast since 1967. Tom holds positions on the Salmon Stamp Committee for California, the California Department of Fish and Game License Agent Advisory Committee and NOAA's California Sportfishing Action Team. He's an IGFA Certified Captain. In an effort to contribute to research, Tom works with NOAA's PFEL tagging chinook salmon. He also worked with NOAA's Santa Cruz field office gathering stomachs and beaks of Humboldt squid. He recently completed a study with the Point Reyes Bird Observatory collecting lingcod, salmon and halibut stomachs and is currently involved in a study with Scripps to gather albacore stomachs. Tom holds Board of Director positions with the Golden Gate Fishermens Association, Coastside Fishing Club and Fishery Enhancement and Research Foundation. He can be heard on four radio stations giving fish reports or discussing fishing politics. He has worked closely with the Recreational Fishing Alliance, PCFFA, the Half Moon Bay Fishermans Marketing Association, United Anglers of Southern California and United Anglers. Tom ran the first trip out of Half Moon Bay to take anglers to catch Humboldt squid and the first white shark viewing trip to the Farallon Islands. He is the first charter boat Captain out of Half Moon Bay to get certified to marry people and has married people on the Huli Cat. Tom ran the first albacore trip out of Half Moon Bay to demonstrate the albacore were again reachable by boat off the Central California coast in the mid 1990's. Tom held a seat on the California Marine Life Protection Act Initiative as a Central Coast Regional Stakeholder group Member.

650-726-2926
Click Here For Past Fishing Reports by Captain Tom Mattusch